Forgotten Trust
by TheBlueJetpack
Summary: 6. Immediately following the events of A Pimple Plan, Luan has returned home from her date with exhilarated spirits, believing that this may very well be her best day ever. This assumption is about to be answered when she senses that something might be up with Luna. A continuation of my established timeline and series.
1. Rocking Together

_A/N: Originally, I was going to include my full thoughts on the recent episode 'A Pimple Plan' and explain why I got a spur-of-the-moment inspiration for my latest fic. But I decided that I didn't want to bore you to bits with my deep analysis and opinions, so I'll give you the abridged version instead before jumping into the story:_

'_A Pimple Plan' was a significant improvement from 'Stage Plight', even though it wasn't perfect. Above all flaws, I hate Luna's role, both her involvement and lack of involvement._

_The severe lack of Luna and Luan's relationship focus in The Loud House is the only thing preventing me from feeling 100% satisfied with the show and seeing how Luna acted towards Luan in 'Pimple Plan' just felt like a major kick in the gut. At this point, it pretty much feels like the writers are deliberately separating the two for reasons beyond my understanding, throwing away all opportunities to explore character dynamic and expansion between the two, and 'Pimple Plan' did not dismantle that feeling whatsoever. If anything, it made it worse._

_My theory is that Luna was intended to play a larger role in the episode that eventually got cut, because her rude remark, refusal to help Luan, and sickly faces made for no less than 5 shots came out of nowhere, and were left unexplained and completely unnecessary to the story. If these details had been used as buildup towards a major plot point, say if Luna were to be the one to ultimately solve Luan's problem despite her clear reluctance to do so earlier, then the irony would complete a fresh conflict resolution, making the story fresh, and I would probably give this all a pass. But nothing clever like that happened, and left the story very predictable and Luna's actions questionable. While Lori also initially refused to help Luan, her motive was redeemed as she continuously pressed throughout the episode that being herself was the best option. Luna's actions are never explained and leave a very sour taste that did nothing to enhance the story. I'm not expecting Luna to be a flawless character, but this just raised so many questions. A quick sift through the various comments left by wikia users supports that I'm not the only one who feels this way. Overall, the fact that they existed at all in the episode was just a huge disappointment._

_So yeah, I was upset by this latest installment, since this is the exact opposite of what I've pressed for for so long, but then it hit me: what's the primary reason why I write Fanfiction? It's so I can lay out what I'd like to see in the show in writing, some of which may eventually or may never happen. Regardless, with the freedom to write and my imagination being the limit, I can write to complete what I see as incomplete, as well as settle the waves and fill in the holes that the official stuff makes with my own thoughts and creative efforts. Rewriting the story that I dislike does not satisfy me, since that means I can never accept the official one. Completing the story does, and allows me to accept every detail I dislike in the aforementioned story._

_Forgotten Trust is my way of providing answers to the unknown and justifying Luna's obscure actions, as well as the 6th installment to my ongoing series of fics. The official order can be found under my profile and I recommend you read those too, since several references to my past work are made here, some of which are important to the plot. They are all under one timeline, so the background knowledge is beneficial. As a side note, I was reading some comments regarding Luna's poor handling in the episode and I came across a special mention to one of my other (and favourite) stories, Warm Hearts. So, I say my thanks to the user known as D'Snowth. I'm glad you enjoyed it!_

_Another thing about me: I love to stuff my stories with Easter eggs, inside jokes, and tons of references. Some very obvious; others far more subtle. For example, every title of every story I've written appears at least once in its actual story (i.e. 'forgotten trust' is interweaved somewhere in the text). Luna and Luan's friend, Tommy Bachmann, who was mentioned in Warm Hearts and in this story, is a play on the Thomas and Friends products made by Bachmann Industries. The buffer Lisa was making in Little Builders is the same one I had to make during my time working in an antibody laboratory. Lola and Lana's argument adopted some altered dialogue taken from one of the comic books in Not Dancing On My Own. Kevin Sullivan and Karla Shropshire made a brief appearance in the aforementioned story. And in this story, the beef stroganoff and curly fries hail callbacks to previous episodes. Let's see how many other references and jokes you can spot._

_But enough of me rambling. Hope you enjoy the story!_

* * *

Forgotten Trust

November 10, 2019 – November 28, 2019

**Part 1 – Rocking Together**

Have you ever done something that just made you feel flat-out guilty? It need not be a crime committed, nor an official rule broken. Even if what you did was in reality not nearly as bad as you think it is, the feeling of guilt is NOT pleasant. It hinders how you operate afterwards and can't help but dump nasty sacks filled with regret and depression upon your shoulders for you to lug around the more you try to ignore it. Guilt is a heavy burden, and is best tackled head-on and at its fullest in order to remove it. One of the best ways is to talk this through with a good friend…especially the one you've wronged.

* * *

_Stubby little hands pressed against the glass as a little girl gazed out of the living room window with curious eyes, admiring the night sky. The lights were off, so the room was very dark, save for the soft glow from the kitchen nearby; the indoor darkness that engulfed her allowed proper viewing of the stars above._

_The girl wore a simple yellow dress and her light brown hair was styled in two pigtails. Her two front teeth were noticeably larger than the others. She beamed widely and scampered off. When she returned, she was clutching the hand of another girl, this one with darker brown hair that flowed down her back; she wore a purple dress and was sporting a matching headband. She looked positively confused as she let her sister drag her excitedly to the window and point._

"_Luna, look! I told you there were tons of stars!"_

_Her sister leaned against the window sill as she too absorbed the beauty of the great outdoors. "It's so pretty," she mused._

"_Dad says to always make a wish on a star," explained the younger girl. "Do you think if I do, it'll come true?"_

_Luna shrugged. "There's only one way to find out. Go on, Luan…you make a wish and I'll make a wish."_

_She nodded and shut her eyes tight, concentrating her young mind. Luna grinned and she did the same. After a moment or two, Luan opened her eyes. "Okay, I'm done."_

"_What 'choo wish for?"_

"_I wished we could play together all the time."_

_Luna tilted her head. "But we already do that."_

"_Yay! Then my wish came true!" she squealed before spontaneously pulling Luna in for a tight hug around the shoulders. The older girl giggled and hugged her back._

"_Jiminy Cricket was right," she whispered into her ear._

_For some reason, she forgot to tell her sister that she had wished for the exact same thing._

* * *

Needless to say, it had been one of the best days of Luan's life, if not _the _best day ever. It was certainly one that she would not be forgetting anytime soon. And how could she? Bundled up in less than 24 hours: her first date, a dramatic and frantic escapade to hide her pimple, the united love and support of her siblings, and Benny's assurance that he liked her no matter how she looked. All these things flooded her mind while she tried to relay the details of her day to Lori when the latter had picked her up from the park, and then again to the rest of the family over dinner of beef stroganoff.

With the bouquet of daisies gifted to her from Benny sitting in a tall vase on the table, and with one of them tucked neatly in her hair, Luan was the centre of attention as her siblings bombarded her with questions and comments, demanding all the details of what had happened during the brief intervals when they had left her and Benny alone, spare none of the details. Nothing ever stayed confidential in the Loud house. Being an artist, Luan loved the attention the audience gave her, with the best points earned if she could make the crowds happy, and tonight was just a giant success in that department.

Everyone, her parents included, seemed so pleased and relieved to hear that her date had ended well after its rocky start. And despite a bulging pimple that jabbed a few minor aches whenever she released her huge grin, Luan didn't hold back the feelings of joy and jubilation spilling from her heart over the events.

Being a girl made for the stage, it was in her nature to have developed skills in observation: when to realize she was losing her audience, how to balance out her act at the midpoint, the works. Then again, her history of bothersome pranks and insensitive stunts on April Fools' Days past didn't showcase this very well and begged to strongly differ, but the previous year had seen a major change in the tides, as her down-graded pranking spree had shown significant improvement in that her siblings enjoyed the chance to laugh alongside her rather than duck and cover when she came near. But that's another story.

Unfortunately, Luan's skills in noticing subtle signals from her audience were more tuned towards a forced gathering that sat before her while she carried the show, and not exactly towards the notifications raised in her everyday life; this was Lori and Luna's specialty. It was mainly due to this poor ability that she often delivered her pun parade while the average outsider would see that her family was clearly not sharing the fun. But every now and then, she could pick up on little signs that told otherwise or raised warning flags in her mind. And it was thanks to this small sliver of observation that allowed her to notice, out of the corner of her eye, that not everyone was in such a chipper mood tonight. A certain sister of hers known as Luna hadn't said a word all evening. And for the loudest Loud to be silent, Luan instantly knew that something was up, and resolved to get to the bottom of the matter.

Rather than diving straight in, she took the time to do a little planning, eventually settling with first finding out what her other sisters knew, before talking directly to her target. Post-dinner found her stationed at the right side of the kitchen sink, scrubbing the discarded dishes with a sponge in soapy water while Lucy stood at the left half, rinsing them off. Through the window, she could see the evening sun starting to set.

"Hey, Lucy?"

"Yeah?"

"What's wrong with Luna? She's been kinda quiet. That's just not normal for her."

Lucy leaned a wet plate in the dish rack next to her. "I guess she has. Though I don't really mind…it's kind of a nice change to be honest."

Luan rolled her eyes. That didn't really answer her question, but coming from Lucy, the quietest and most mysterious of the family, it wasn't completely unexpected.

Also on dish-duty tonight was Lynn. "Hey, I noticed that too," she piped up as she dried off a stack of wet cups before placing them in their cupboard. "And that's just weird. But not as weird as the faces she was making when we left you and Benny for the last time."

That caught Luan's attention. "She was making weird faces? That doesn't sound like Luna to me."

Lynn slid a dried plate onto a shelf. "Yeah, totally _OOC_, right? She was looking like she was going to barf until we got home. Then she went up to her room and none of us saw her until you and Lori came home for dinner."

Luan became more concerned with this latest scoop. "What do you think is her problem?"

"Dunno. Maybe she's bummed out that the Trenchers lost their third game this season," Lynn shrugged as she wiped the last drops of water off a handful of forks. Then, as if to emphasize her theory, the athletic jock yanked open the utensil drawer and slammed the bundle into their spot, accompanying the loud clatter with her obligatory cheer. "Touchdown! WOO!"

Lucy didn't share her sister's enthusiasm. "Lynn. I'm pretty sure Luna doesn't care about a sports team."

"The Trenchers are not just 'a' sports team," snapped Lynn, firing up at once.

Luan said nothing as Lynn and Lucy proceeded to argue. Her thoughts were directed back towards her older sister. Luna was a very social butterfly and rarely did anything alone, much less shut anyone out. Even when she wanted to play her music, she welcomed anyone who came to visit her in their bedroom or the garage to share her musical sessions regardless of their obvious lack of musical talent. So to hear that she had disappeared without a trace and resurface only at dinner was rather worrisome to Luan.

In fact, with all things considered, she couldn't remember interacting with Luna all that much today. Her immediate sanctuary upon discovering her pimple had been Lori and Leni's room, for it had quickly formulated in her panicked deductive reasoning that her eldest sister would be the most knowledgeable on matters like this, seeing as she had the most experience in dating predicaments out of their siblings. Afterwards, it had been a crazy whirlwind of ideas and stunts courtesy of the rest of her family to find her a cure. But even during then, Luan couldn't remember any direct involvement with Luna. She knew she had been present the whole time, but she certainly hadn't noticed any weird faces from her sister. Then again, Benny and her ugly blemish had been the only things occupying her mind all day.

"I can think of 47 things better to do than sitting in front of the TV watching football."

"Oh, and I guess lying in a coffin doing deep-dive thinking on what it would be like to be bitten by a blood-obsessed vampire is one of them!"

But more to the point, if something was indeed wrong with Luna, then Luan had to find out what it was on the double and help her. After all, she felt she owed very much to Luna in particular after the events of the last year and a half or so. Thanks to Luna, she didn't suffer through the previous winter when the house's furnace had died. And it was her older sister who had eased her anxiety over her troubled fears of not meeting Benny's expectations in a suitable girlfriend. Besides, sisters look out for sisters. If any sibling was in trouble, she'd do anything to help them out and provide them with the unconditional love they had all showed her that very day.

With a new mission formulating in her mind, Luan looked down at the dirty plate in her soapy hand. _The sooner I get these dishes done, the better,_ she thought, as she eyed a fragment of cheese still stuck to it. _Then we can take care of the next thing on the PLATTER. Heeheehee!_

Just then, Lana wandered in and pointed at the cheese smudge. "Hey, are you gonna eat that?" she asked innocently.

* * *

With dishes done, Luan left Lynn and Lucy squabbling in the living room while she herself headed upstairs. She wasn't expecting there to be a problem; she and Luna had no trouble opening up to each other, especially after they had been separated for a good month, then reunited with a greater appreciation and devotion embedded for one another. Her expectations, however, had depended on Luna actually being in their room to talk, so they were slightly dashed when she found that her roommate was not there. Scattered clothes, instruments, CDs, and various comedy props were the only company there to greet her. The comedienne frowned. Where else could she be?

She whisked out her iphone and sent a quick text. _Hey, where r u?_

A low buzz that resonated immediately after tapping the send button caused her to look towards the vanity tabletop, where a purple phone lay vibrating, waiting for its owner to check its latest received message. Wherever Luna was, she had not taken her phone with her. So that idea was out.

Almost instinctively, Luan left the room and glided directly down the hall to Lincoln's living quarters. If there was anyone in the family who was observant enough to know all the going-ons in the family, inside and out, it was the owner of the bedroom door that Luan was now knocking on.

Lincoln opened it after her second round, looking a bit annoyed. "What's up, Luan?"

Luan just stared at the boy. For reasons unknown, he had decided to exchange his usual attire for a black suit complete with an orange bowtie. The last time she had seen him dressed up like this was for their celebratory dinner and dance event last summer. And although she had to admit that her brother cleaned up quite nicely, Luan couldn't help but let his abrupt change in appearance cause her to release uncontrollable giggles. "Lincoln, what are you doing in there?" she managed to ask with a silly grin.

"Nothing," he said firmly. Knowing that her brother certainly did not go full dressed up for 'nothing' made her laugh out loud and made him frown. "Luan, what is it? I'm kind of in the middle of something."

"Yeah, I can see that. I'll bet that monkey suit of yours stirs up some real monkey business! Get it?"

Luan laughed again and Lincoln let out an annoyed huff. The usual order. Amidst the fit of giggles and tears stinging her eyes, the girl suddenly remembered her reason for bugging him and tried her hardest to stop. "Sorry, Linc. Um, I'm looking for Luna. Do you know where she is?"

Seeing that Luan was being serious again, Lincoln straightened up. "Sorry, I haven't seen her. I thought she was in your room."

The girl shook her head. "No, so I thought you might know." She then jumped to her next eager question. "Hey, has she been acting weird today?"

Lincoln scratched his head thoughtfully. "Well…when we were waiting for Miguel to finish up with you this morning, she did look kind of sick…kind of like how Lola looks when Lana plays in the mud."

This evidence strongly matched Lynn's description from earlier, making Luan more concerned. "Ok, thanks, Linc. I'll keep searching…and let you go back to being you!"

Lincoln watched his sister head down the stairs and out of sight, giggling all the way. "She'd never let me hear the end of it if she _did_ know what I was doing," he told the fourth wall. He closed the door and began digging under his bed. "Now, where are those fake wedding rings?"

* * *

Getting a laugh out of Lincoln's dashing look had lifted Luan's spirits considerably, but with new information presented, she was now more determined to find Luna than ever. Halfway down the stairs, and still snickering, an instant brainwave caused her to make a U-turn on her heel to double back and check Lisa and Lily's room, thinking that Luna might have been playing with their infant sister. But all she found when peeking through the crack in the ajar door was Lisa sitting on the carpeted floor, building a tower of blocks with Lily. A rather unusual sight, given that this was Lisa of all people, but Luan decided to explore this another day. Leaving her youngest sisters at peace, she continued her search for Luna.

Entering the living room again, she found that nothing had changed; Lynn and Lucy were still at it. Deciding not to intervene, Luan stepped outside to let the sounds of their bantering become drowned out of her ears, engulfed instead by the silent hum of the late evening outside. The ringing of the rambunctious indoor activity was still rounding back and forth in her head as she took in her new environment. The sun had almost set entirely by this point, leaving behind a pale orange sky tinted with pink and dotted with dark blue streaks of cloud. Every roof and treetop for miles was splashed with invisible orange paint courtesy of the disappearing sun. A very pretty sight all told, but admiring Mother Nature's beauty wasn't Luan's objective.

"Luna?" she called out.

No answer.

She called her name a second time, in feeble hope that Luna would come prancing out from an unknown hiding spot to greet her back, but alas, that didn't stand to be very possible. Luan breathed in the fresh air, letting it clear her mind and assess a new search plan. But it was only when she was regrouping her thoughts when she finally got the chance to not only see her new environment, but hear it too. She heard the faint whistling of the breeze wafting lazily past, coupled with the distant sounds of faraway laughter from various neighbouring houses and the nearby playground.

And the light echoes of musical tones from guitar strings.

Hearing the undeniable sounds of Luna's guitar faintly in the air, Luan knew that its owner was close. She just couldn't see her. Looking around much more carefully now, she finally spotted the toe of a purple boot protruding from around the large oak tree in the front yard, slightly out of view and no less than a hop and skip away from her. Luan's spirits rose. She lost no time in advancing towards the tree and walking around it to face the very sister she had been seeking.

"Luna!"

Luna's concentration broke as she looked up from her instrument to lock eyes with Luan. There was a pause as the sisters, one sitting and one standing, just stared at each other.

"Oh…hey, dude. I didn't know you were out here."

Luan noted how depleted in energy Luna's voice sounded, but her inner clown-esque personality couldn't bite back the urge to crack a pun. The opportunity was too great to fight. "I called your name twice, but it looks like you _tuned _me out. Ha ha! Get it?"

Her reality regulator caught up to her tongue and mentally kicked her for blurting that out. More so when she saw Luna raise an unimpressed eyebrow at her laughter. "Oh, sorry, I shouldn't have said that," she relented. "Uh, I didn't know you were out here, either. What are you doing?"

Luna turned her head back down, apparently very engrossed with her guitar in hand. "Not much."

The younger girl settled herself down on the cool grass against the tree trunk at Luna's left and gazed at her features. There was no overlooking the abnormally miserable aura that Luna was emitting; the girl was looking rather wilted and less of her cool, upbeat self, which clearly indicated that something big was troubling her deep inside. Boarding with Luna for so long had allowed Luan to see enough of her sister's alternate moods to not think otherwise.

Luan wasn't really one for small, light conversation, preferring instead to set the recipient up for a pun or a wise crack that she would have the honour of delivering. Luna was an exception; she never found any trouble in talking with her about anything in the world, whether it be easygoing chit-chat or the occasional deep and soulful heart-to-hearts. But this evening must have been special; there was something about the atmosphere that was making it unusually difficult for Luan to talk to her immediate older sister.

"H-How're you, Luna?"

"Fine."

"Are you sure?"

"Yep."

This clearly wasn't working; Luna wasn't being mute, but she wasn't doing anything to allow the conversation to flow either. So, Luan tried a different approach.

"I had a really good time with Benny today."

"That's great, brah."

Luan mustered up a small smile. "Even with this crazy pimple, he still really likes me. You were right with what you told me before we were dating; he does like me for me!"

She watched Luna's mouth curve a tiny smile of her own, albeit barely. "I told you he would."

Luan felt her smile increase a bit more, not just because of her most recent memories with Benny, but because she was getting a reaction from her sister. "I thought this day was going to be the worst day ever when I discovered my pimple. But I think this might be the best day ever!"

She then lowered her voice. "At least…it would be if I could figure out what's bugging you."

She watched Luna carefully, but her sister made no movements, aside from dropping her weak smile. It was impossible to read what Luna was thinking, though this required a skill that Luan was still working on developing. She spoke in a gentle voice. "Do you want to tell me what's wrong?"

Luna looked away again. "Nope."

Her shoulders sagged in disappointment. "Well…all right then. It's getting late." She stood up and then lent a hand down in hopes that Luna would accept it. "You coming?"

"Nope."

Luan retracted her arm, her hand now feeling strangely cold and empty. But deciding that she better not push her sister any further, she surrendered to the feeling of failure in her mission. "Okay. I'll be up in our room if you're ready to talk." With sadness and dejection rising in her stomach, she started to head back to the house, where she could only hope that another chance for Luna to open up to her would surface soon. Thinking that she could perhaps finish off this day by practicing some basic routines with Mr. Coconuts, she had just started to cross the front steps when she heard a voice speak up to her.

"Luan?"

Luan stopped dead in her tracks and looked back. "Yeah?"

She watched Luna set aside her guitar, propping it against the tree trunk to her right. "There is…something bogging me down."

In less than an instant, Luan was back on the grass, next to her sister. "What is it, Luna?" she asked kindly.

The musician was looking very troubled indeed. Very rarely did Luan ever have the opportunity to see her like this, not that she ever wanted to. Still staring at her feet, Luna chocked out a response. "I'm sorry, Luan."

"For what?"

Luna sighed. "For not being a very good sister."

Multiple alarms were setting off in her mind and making her more confused than ever. She placed a hand on Luna's knee. "What do you mean? You're a great sister."

"Not today, I wasn't," she said, flatly. "The thing about me, dude…I don't like pimples."

Luan frowned. That was all? "But I don't like pimples either. None of us do. They're ugly and make you look weird."

Luna turned her head towards her. "What I mean is…I _really hate_ pimples. They just freak me out." She shifted her body around to face Luan better. "You remember Tommy Bachmann from middle school some years back? His whole face was totally covered in the stuff. I'm ashamed to say this, but whenever he got near me, I'd flat out make some wild excuse to hit the road and walk the other way. Just the thought of those creepy balls of junk make me cringe like a crumpled sheet of wacked-out music notes."

The nauseated expression that Luna's face was subconsciously contorting was enough to prove her point without any words needed. Recognition sparked Luan's mind as she realized that Luna had indeed been pulling faces like this one all day, but they had completely slipped past her mind in her frantic search for a remedy for her pimple.

"And then…when_ I_ started breaking out, I went through the exact same chaos you had today. But unlike you, I didn't ask my sibs for help."

Luan tilted her head curiously. "What'd you do?"

Luna gave an easy shrug. "Pretty much what you did. I tried to hide my own face. I made any excuse to avoid talking to anyone. But…I don't want to get into that. The point is that I've always been, well, _afraid_ of pimples."

A deep blush was creeping her cheeks as she turned her face away, embarrassed. Luan suddenly understood why: Luna had a secret fear, one she did not know about until today. Much like her own hidden phobia of curly fries, developed from a very young age following a horrific experience during an open-mic gig at the local bowling alley. It was mere child's play compared to the occasional heckling and humiliation that she faced off with larger crowds these days, but at the time, it had been nothing short of traumatic to young Luan.

This new discovery, however, didn't explain Luna's miserable state.

"But…how come you're so sad about that, Luna? Pimples are gross and kind of creepy, yeah, but that's nothing to be ashamed of."

"It's not your pimple that's got me all bummed out, dude," Luna interrupted with sudden energy strengthening her cracking voice. "It's the way I treated you today."

Luan blinked in confusion. "I…don't remember you doing anything to me."

"Exactly. It's what I _didn't _do."

Now Luan was just plain befuddled. Normally, she didn't have trouble understanding Luna's laid-back hard-rock jargon and figures of speech, but this was something entirely different. None of it made sense to her whatsoever. "I'm sorry, Luna, I really don't get where you're going with this."

The sun had set and the sky was becoming darker, but the last faint rays of evening light were falling upon the pair such that they could see each other perfectly. A good thing too, because Luna wanted her sister's full attention for this, since it was now clear that her troubles weren't nearly as obvious to Luan as they were to her. There was a brief pause as Luna mentally prepared to lay out everything that was crowding her buzzing mind.

"This was the day you talked about for weeks. Your first date ever. You were beyond excited, brah. And to tell you the truth, so was I. I was stoked for you. You finally found the soulmate your heart was searching for. And I wanted to be ready for you just in case you needed your big sis as your right-hand gal."

Luna lowered her voice, now raspier and more broken than ever. She cast her eyes away from Luan to the street beyond as she continued.

"But then…when you woke up today and found that pimple…the moment I saw it, I completely lost it. I forgot about you. I forgot about your date. All I remembered were my deep dark fears. I couldn't help myself when I belted out what an eye-sore that was. After that, I shut up whenever you were near 'cuz I didn't want to say anything else insensitive until this whole day was over. Didn't you notice that I only ever gave you any support after Miguel covered it up?"

Luan thought back, allowing the dawning effect to wash over; Luna had indeed been extremely quiet all day until she had returned from Miguel's makeover session.

_Benny's a lucky dude!_

"It's 'cuz I didn't have to look at it when I looked at you, so I started acting all normal biz'," Luna explained. "But when we pulled you out of that tree and I saw your face, I, well…" Luna trailed off, not willing to revisit this anymore. The memories were hurling too many punches to her gut. "Now do you see why my heart's all tangled in a knot, sis? I'm ashamed and I regret everything today. I wasn't there for you when you needed me. What hits me the hardest is that Lori and Leni were giving me their best advice when I was having trouble during my first date with Sam. But I didn't give you the same treatment. You needed help and I didn't give you any. And it's not you, Luan. It's me. I was selfish and let your pimple drive me away. I'm no better than a snapped guitar string…can't give no music and just bogus to the others. I don't deserve to be your big sister."

Luan stared at Luna with hurt eyes and a frozen mind. "Luna, I…I didn't know. W-why didn't you tell me all this sooner?"

Luna sighed deeply and then turned herself away, no longer feeling worthy of facing her sister. "Because I didn't want to say anything else that would ruin your special day. These lips said quite enough this morning. After we left you and Benny, I figured that I could at least let you enjoy the rest of the day without me barging in again." The rocker closed her eyes. "Please, Luan, just…just go back inside. I don't want to say anything else that might hurt you. I…need to be alone for a while."

The sky was darkening quickly and the first stars of the night were beginning to shine through, but Luan didn't take notice. Her full attention was focused upon Luna as she stared at her hidden face, a mixture of strong feelings overtaking her powers of thinking, among them sorrow, shock, and sympathy. Sorrow for Luna's guilt in not feeling she had fulfilled her duties for her little sister, shock that Luna would think such things, one bit in particular, and sympathy…that now cultivated into the realization that it was now up to her to restore Luna's fractured heart. A task normally bestowed upon Lori or Luna towards the rest of the family including herself. Very rarely did Luan find herself in the position to pick up a fallen sibling and set them back down the right path with rejuvenated spirits. She had done it once before to Luna following the _America's Next Hitmaker_ incident and more recently to Lincoln when he had been missing Ronnie Anne during the party. And now, as she gazed at her big sister, who was close to shutting herself down, it was clear that she would have to do it again.

Luna, feeling saddened and guilty, sat mournfully against the tree with her eyes closed. The world didn't deserve a selfish individual like herself, let alone Luan. With no further plans of what to do, her only idea was to sit here wallowing in her own faults…that is until she felt a pair of arms snake themselves around her, accompanied by Luan's high-pitched voice to break the silence.

"Yeah well, too bad, you…you loony _Luna_-tic! 'Cuz I'm not going anywhere."

Luna turned to face Luan, and felt surprise, confusion, and a tiny sliver of relief when she saw that Luan was wearing a gentle smile. "I'm staying right here with my big sister," she said firmly.

"But…why, dude? Don't you get it? What kind of big sister am I to leave my little sister in the dark?"

"And what kind of little sister would _I_ be if I just left my big sister in the dark?" Luan countered with strength in her voice, cleverly using the late evening's darkness to aid her point, though she managed to restrain herself from laughing at her own pun this time. Luna became quiet as she just stared at her, trapped in Luan's hold.

For a moment, Luan's mind went blank; now that she had Luna's attention, what was she supposed to say to make her feel better? It could not be stressed enough that she didn't have nearly as much experience in comforting someone who needed it, with the role falling upon those in her family better suited to the job and excluding Luan as an option given her long-standing record of not being able to handle important matters seriously. But Luna needed her, so Luan decided that at the very least, she could be fully honest with her thoughts on the matter. And above all, keep the puns out.

Lowering her voice to speak calmly, yet clearly, she kept her eyes locked with those of her sister, gently stroking Luna's back as she began pouring out the thoughts that were bubbling at the very surface of her mind. "Luna. You're my big sister and you always will be. Nothing can ever change that. You…you've helped me so many times, sometimes without even knowing that you do. Just remembering that you're always there for me is a big reason why I keep going. You're more than my sister, Lunes. You're my best friend. You're a pillar for me to lean on when life gets rough and a pillow for me to cry on late at nights…"

"…I'm not going to disown you just because you made one little slip-up."

These things she said were far more than just words; they were emotionally driven packages delivered straight from the heart and using the mouth as a direct passageway to their destination, which she hoped with her entire being that it was the heart of her Luna.

The depressed musician's spirit couldn't resist lifting ever so slightly as she listened to her sister say these statements. "You mean you're not…mad?"

Luan let out a light giggle. "Do I look mad?" she asked as if this was the most obvious question in the world, which of course it was; she knew that. She gave Luna a loving squeeze. "Luna, I think this might be the best day of my life! I had my first date with Benny, I learned that he really does love me for who I am and not what I look like, _and_ I can end the day spending quality time with my sister. The only thing that would top this day would be if I was accepted into that comedienne's college!"

She carefully retracted her arms, releasing Luna. "And honestly, Lunes? I didn't take offense from what you said about my pimple this morning. It really just made me focus on trying to get rid of it. If anyone else had said it, I wouldn't have reacted differently. I was panicking too much about my date to care who said what about it. So, I really didn't notice you treating me any differently."

Luna's mouth twitched as she looked intently at her. "Yeah, but…that doesn't mean what I did was right."

"It doesn't," came Luan's response.

Luna felt her heart sink, not exactly expecting that. "Oh."

But Luan wasn't finished; she took a moment to compose her next words carefully. "What you said…was mean. And looking back, it did hurt a bit. But it was because you have a huge dislike for pimples, so you let it slip out. And then you avoided me for the whole day. So no, what you did wasn't very nice. But you had a reason behind it. And because now I understand why…I can forgive you."

"You can?" Luna asked in a small hopeful voice.

"Of course, I can," the comedienne soothed. "We all make mistakes, Luna. We're only human. But we learn. And if there's anything I know about you that the rest of the world doesn't, it's that you always try to make yourself a better person."

Feeling a binary mixture of profound affection and yearning for her sister to return from the shadows swirl inside her, Luan brought her arms around Luna again, this time bringing her into a tight hug.

"But this…just isn't you," she whispered into Luna's shoulder, a touch of sorrow present in her unusually quiet youthful voice. "Luna Loud never beats herself up this badly after making one mistake. Where is she now? I really want her back. Where's that rockin', confident, totally awesome big sister that I know and love?"

Silence fell upon them as Luna returned the comforting embrace, feeling warm and loved, yet still sad all the same as she experienced a combination of her original guilt and this new found guilt in making Luan feel this way. "She's here," she finally breathed, permitting a few tears to escape and roll down her cheeks. "She's just feeling like a jerk for letting her sister down."

Maintaining her hold, Luan pulled back just enough to let her forehead gently touch Luna's; their faces no less than an inch apart, her voice filled with assurance and warmth. "But even though she did, her little sister still loves her. You do know this, don't you?"

The rocker gazed at the ground as she felt Luan's forehead making contact with hers; she slowly took in the presence of the girl sitting before her, the sister whom she first swore to always protect and look after ever since she was old enough to let it sink in that she was her little sister and that it was now her proud responsibility and destiny to raise a younger one after letting Lori, Leni, and their parents do the same to her. "I do," she whispered weakly. "And I love you too. I just…wish I could have done a better job at showing that today," she said with a defeated tone.

She felt Luan's palm slowly stroke her freckled cheek, wiping the stained tear streaks away. "Luna, I can't expect you to be a saint 100% of the time," she explained. "How else will we fight and argue and bite each other's dignity during sibling fights? But no matter how much you and I squabble over tiny matters and get in each other's hair, none of it has _ever _made me love you any less. Don't you feel the same way?"

"Of course, dude," Luna murmured almost automatically. "I love you no matter how much we rip each other apart."

"Then why should this be any different?"

Luna looked down at the grass for another moment or two, soaking in Luan's words of peace and assurance. She slowly detached her forehead from Luan's, so she could look her in the eye. Tonight's full moon was slowly bathing the pair in a dim light that was growing brighter by infinitesimal degrees. Thanks to this, Luna could make out Luan's features clearly enough: her sparkling braces, her soft brown eyes, the daisy tucked neatly in her hair that was tied back in its trademark ponytail, and her small pink pimple. She suddenly became aware of how close Luan's face was to her own; a screaming voice deep in the back of her head was wailing out for her to back away and make some distance from the pimple as soon as possible. This same irritating voice had been the one Luna had listened to all day whenever Luan was near and let seize control of her mind. But somehow, Luna (or at least the part of her that seemed to currently be in control of her mind anyway) was able to ignore this one lone warning bell and focus on something far more important instead: her sister.

"But I still feel like a real bonehead for giving you the cold shoulder," Luna muttered. "How can you just let it slide like none of that happened?"

"It's called loyalty, Lunes," she soothed. "And trust. I know that you'll always be there for me when I need you, even when you feel that you're not, just like how I always try to be there for you. We're sisters. It's in our blood."

In a final act of rescue, she took hold of Luna's hand and whispered low. "Anything that's happened in the past…has passed. You can't change the past, but you can change yourself for a better present and future. I've forgiven you. Now it's time for you to forgive yourself. Can you do that?"

Luna let the words mesh into her mind as she gradually found herself being drawn to Luan's heartful message. She observed Luan, taken aback at how she could forgive her so easily, given that she felt Luan had every reason to turn her back on her as she did to her for the majority of the day. But here she was, her little sister, gazing up at her with soft eyes filled with hope and desperation to lift Luna back up from the ground and forgiveness stemming from an unconditional love for her big sister. It was these things that finally gave Luna the strength to sit up a little straighter.

"I guess…I guess I can, Lulu," she finally said. "I guess I can move on…and learn from this. I promise I'll be a better support for you. Always."

Luan smiled as she mentally noted that Luna had just referred to her with her nickname. This was a good sign. "I know you will. You know why? 'Cuz you're strong and your heart is almost always in the right place. You really care about your music and instruments, and everyone knows you as the rock and roll queen. I do too, but I also know that you care about those you love even more. That's why you're my favourite person to hang out with. It's why I have no trouble opening up to you. You understand me, even if what I'm going through doesn't always interest you. All the pep-talks you've given me before my performances, all the late-night talks we've had, that time you helped me to stop worrying about Benny…you've always been like this, Luna, and sometimes I forget how lucky I am to have you as my sister."

Luan suddenly lowered her eyes. "And to tell you the truth, Lunes, sometimes I really envy you."

Luna, who had secretly been enjoying this small dose of praising, quickly noticed the sudden drop in Luan's confident demeanor. "What do you mean, dude?"

"You think you've wronged me…but look how many times I've wronged you and our whole family for so long…I'm sure you know that very well. But I've never felt that deep regret you were just having now. Maybe I'm the one who's not a good sister…"

"Dude, don't say that."

Luan suddenly felt the old shackles of her own guilt begin to grip her, her insides now feeling as dark as the evening darkness consuming the area. She began to voice her fleeting thoughts as they came to her in a blur, out of a forgotten corner of her mind to come flowing out of her mouth in a lofty sort of way. "I messed up so many times…I've hurt you in so many ways…physically and inside. And yet…you forgave me every time. But I never seemed to learn from them like you. Instead I just kept repeating them every year. Maybe that's the reason why none of our younger siblings have really come to me for help. It's always you or Lori or even Lincoln they run to. I can never be who you are."

Tears of shame and disappointment were now pooling in Luan's eyes as old flaming memories began to burn her from the inside. In an unexpected and rapid change of pace, it was now Luan who was feeling guilty. Because of this, Luna felt an ugly sensation rise in her throat; she couldn't let this happen, not on Luan's best day ever. Swiftly shifting her body even closer to Luan, she tilted her chin up to meet her gaze. "Luan, it's okay. Everyone…is different. But it's like you said: we all make mistakes and we learn from them. Sometimes we have to make them more than once to really feel that we need to change."

Luan looked up at Luna for a moment before dropping her gaze. "But all the things I used to do…were so horrible to you. So much worse than what you did to me. Driving my own family away for the fun of it…laughing when I hurt them…" Luan shut her eyes, bearing the load of her old burdens once more as it truly hit her how badly she had treated Luna and the rest of her family over the years.

"I'm so sorry, Luna. All those years ago…I never realized how much you meant to me and just treated you like my roommate. Sometimes like dirt. We were close when we were really little, and then we drifted apart, but still, you were important to me. It just never really clicked in…until…until…"

"Until I left," finished Luna, remembering how this had all started. "The school band retreat…you felt alone for the first time, didn't you." This was said as a statement, not a question, for she already knew the answer.

"Well, yes and no. It was actually first when you changed yourself for that song contest," Luan corrected in hushed tones. "When you became Lulu, it made me realize how much it hurt to see you disappear. And then…you left for the retreat and it was the first time you and I were apart for so long. And I realized…that you wouldn't always be with me forever. It made me understand how much I needed you. And when you came back…that night you kept me warm during the winter…"

Luan swallowed hard.

"…really opened my eyes to how much I was taking you for granted," she finished weakly.

It became quiet as Luan said no more, her regretful eyes downcast upon the moonlit ground. Luna was equally quiet, but she was thinking deeply. At last, she brought her arms around her sister, pulling her in gently and rubbing her back comfortingly. "I can't promise that I'll always be with you in person, Luan. But I do promise this: even if we're a million miles apart and rockin' our own business at opposite ends of the Earth, I'll still be with you. I'll be in your heart…like you are in mine."

She felt Luan nuzzle her face into her shoulder as she went on. "And even with all those harsh pranking shenan's you pulled on me in the past, nothing's keeping me from you now, is it?" She carefully pulled back, keeping her hands on her sister's shoulders to meet her face directly. "You've already fixed your past mistakes from those pranking sprees, brah. I've seen the way you've reworked them so they're not harmful anymore and more fun. Not just for you, but for all of us. And I'm…so proud of you. I've watched you change for the better, not just within the last year, but all my life…you're taking on more responsibilities…you care about people more. It may have taken a while, but who says you gotta change overnight? I've watched you mature…watched you grow."

"We grow together," Luan joined in with confidence. "We help each other out."

"We catch each other when we fall," Luna whispered.

"It's what keeps us together."

All became quiet again as they sat before each other in silence. Luan leaned forward to rest the side of her head against Luna's chest, seeking comfort; the latter wrapping her arm around her as she heard her younger sister sniffle quietly in the fabric of her shirt. But just as Luan had disliked the sight of her older sister so broken up inside, Luna equally hated to see Luan despondent too. It just wasn't right for her cheerful, optimistic partner-in-crime to enter this miserable state. Especially on this day. She wanted to lift her Lulu up, just as she had done to her what felt like only a few minutes ago.

Luna gently pulled Luan back up and used her thumb to wipe the few droplets from her sister's eyes. The mental voice warning her about the pimple was almost nonexistent by this point, replaced instead by harmonic voices singing a calm melody of promise and restoration, for with Luan, someone very close to her and would remain close for years to come, Luna felt no reason to be depressed anymore.

"Dude?"

Luan met her gaze.

"We've always rocked together, and we _always will be_ rocking together. We're a team. There will always be a 'Luna and Luan'. We're like…we're like Ami and Yumi. No matter what happens, we'll see it through as one."

Then Luna smiled, letting the love for her sister shine through her heart and grant her first true smile of the entire day. Many sources of material and artificial objects ranging from guitars to chocolate covered almonds prompted her to release such a smile, but tonight, her feelings of joy were flowing from a very special source indeed. One that was far less material and far more genuine.

"You really are full of surprises, Lulu. Even though I've never liked any of them all that much…tonight I'm nothing but grateful that you came for me. Benny really is the luckiest dude to have a girl like you."

Luan's eyes sparkled as she gazed deeply at Luna and felt her heart glow as bright as the sun, its light reflecting up to her youthful face and cumulating in a true smile of her own. Though the heavy memories of her past wrongdoings were still painful to recall – and she doubted that they ever would cease to be – she couldn't help but feel better in Luna's presence. The familiar aura of comfort that Luna always shared with her was nothing short of something beautiful to absorb and refresh her. With Luna's help, she could be a better comedienne for the world, a better girlfriend for Benny, but most of all, a better sister for her family.

"Sam's made a pretty good pick too," she told her truthfully. Luna blushed and let her smile grow twofold; it never failed to give her delight to know that her entire family supported her blossoming romance. Luan was no exception.

"It's good to have you back…you loony Lunatic," Luan teased, playfully flicking at one of Luna's paperclip earrings.

The rocker's warm smile grew even more. "It's good to be back…you kooky goofball."

This exchange made Luan giggle. And Luna joined her; it felt good to be talking again.

Best of all, it was good to be friends again.

But then, their friendship had never ended in the first place.

Luna finally got up from the ground with Luan following suit, but sitting in one position for so long had taken its toll on her legs, for they took half a second too long to adjust to their new weight and she suddenly stumbled, letting out a high-pitched yelp as she was about to crash back down had a pair of hands not swoop in and hold her firmly around the waist just in time.

Shaking out the brief moment of shock, Luan looked up at her saviour. Luna blinked at her as she helped Luan upright, holding on to her until she had fully regained balance. Then Luan smiled sweetly. "If you wanted to prove that you would truly be there to catch me when I fall, it looks like you just did."

Luna rubbed the back of her neck. "Well, that wasn't what I meant…but I dig it."

Luan giggled and enveloped Luna in another hug. For the third time that night, they hugged. The first two had been hugs out of comfort, one for each of them. And this one…well, neither Luna nor Luan could describe exactly where this one was coming from. But it didn't seem to really matter. Driven by joy to have one another in their lives and with a forgotten trust in their sisterhood renewed and embedded safely in their hearts, there was just no reason why they couldn't engage in one more embrace; as if polarized by a magnet, they clung to each other, surrounded by a mutual love that they had shared all their lives, a love that never dies even when it is forgotten. This was a special hug, one filled with promise to have each other's backs through rain or shine and to be there when a sister needed her sister the most. One that instantly sent a peculiar sensation coursing through their bloodstreams. A rare sensation it was to find, let alone to behold, and for Luan, it was a treasure she had discovered with Luna long ago and would never ever give up for any of her worldly desires found in material goods.

Luna felt the exact same way.

"Don't ever let me hear you say that you don't deserve to be my big sister again," Luan mumbled as she buried her face into the crook of Luna's neck, wanting to be absolutely clear. "If you do, I'll prank you so hard that you won't have any fingers left to play your guitar anymore."

Luna said nothing, letting the threat slide past in exchange for simply enjoying the feeling of Luan nestled snuggly into her and the forgiveness her sister had gifted out of her own accord. It didn't even matter that the cheek Luan's pimple was on was making direct contact with her; Luna didn't care. All she wanted to do was hug Luan and let any traces of her depressed energy inside blow far, far away and be gone with the wind.

* * *

From inside the Loud house, Lucy and Lynn, their previous argument long forgotten, watched their older siblings out in the front yard; two silhouettes standing against the rising moonlight. Like a silent film, they did not hear any of what the teens had said, yet could still see them.

"You see, Luce? I told you that Luan could help Luna get over the Trenchers' total loss," Lynn was saying.

"Sigh. Lynn, I am beyond certain that that wasn't Luna's problem."

Lynn rolled her eyes. "Yeah, yeah, sure, sure. Next thing you'll be telling me is that Lincoln was all moody last summer at the dance party 'cuz he wanted to dance with Ronnie Anne!"

"Groan," was all Lucy could say.

* * *

_A/N (Nov 30/19): If you're wondering where the true ending is, allow me to explain. I had originally published this entire story as one single chapter, until I flagged a major error that required an immediate clean-up. While doing so, I decided to split this story into 2 chapters, a large one and a smaller one. So, if you remember reading the ending on the published date, Nov 28__th__, don't panic; it will come back, with some additional content. Please be patient until I clean up the bugs and post the ending as a second chapter._


	2. Magic in the Air

_A/N: Again, my sincere apologies if I caused major confusion with this 'update' while I cleaned up the mess, but the full story is now out and complete, and should be free from major errors. Enjoy the ending, and let me know what you think!_

* * *

**Part 2 – Magic in the Air**

The sisters remained locked in their embrace, relaxing and absorbing their presence. It was one thing to possess sisterhood; it was quite another to feel the full extent of it, allowing rushing rivers of assurance and unconditional love to spiral through their very being. Eventually, they let each other go, both finally feeling content and happy in the peace they brought each other. It was true that Luna did not know where she would be years from now, or even perhaps tomorrow. But no matter where she did end up, she would make certain to enclose her family in the safety of her heart forever and take them along for the journey. Most of all, Luan would be with her.

The ponytailed girl was thinking the same thing as she finally lowered her arms. "Lunes?" she asked.

"Yeah, dude?"

"How 'bout we be honest with each other from now on? So we can let each other know how we're doing and help right away."

Luna placed her hand atop her little sister's head, stroking her hair affectionately. "I'd love that," she whispered, her voice no longer broken.

Luan couldn't help but let herself melt a little upon the touch. She never could resist her hair being stroked, especially if it came from Luna. Then, out of nowhere, a spur-of-the-moment wisp of inspiration flew into her mind, prompting her to take hold of Luna's free hand. "Let's go," she said, tugging her arm gently.

"Go?"

"Yeah, let's go. And bring your guitar." Luan picked up Luna's instrument from its perch against the tree and held it out for her sister to take, which she did, though looking confused.

With Luna's hand held securely in her own, Luan led her sister off the Louds' property and down the lonely sidewalk. Luna swung the strap around to secure the guitar against her back, allowing her hand to be free while the other held onto Luan's. She had no idea where they were going or what Luan had in mind, so she simply let her take her away. Knowing her prankster of a sister, she could have easily believed Luan was leading her to a master prank trap, but after such an intimate time spent together tonight, she highly doubted Luan would deliberately ruin the magic they had experienced. And besides, on any given day, no matter what she was doing, Luna always enjoyed her sister's company thoroughly.

But of course, she was still curious as to where Luan was taking her.

Away from the house and down the empty street they went. The familiar noises of faint chattering and clattering from their household gradually dissipated until they were nonexistent completely.

"That was hard for you, wasn't it?"

Luan's quiet voice reached out to her ears. She looked across at her.

"What was?"

"All of that. Admitting your fear, not knowing what to do, telling me why you were this way…feeling broken inside?"

Luna became quiet, taking a minute for reflection.

"A little," she affirmed. "I'm just so used to knowing what to do all the time. Looks like the tables turned, huh?"

Luan nodded. "Makes sense. You're the cool sister of the family. It's always us who are looking to you for answers."

The rocker teen cast her eyes down to her boots, allowing Luan be her guide while she switched all her energy to thinking. "I'll be honest, dude. It felt…kind of weird to be on the other end…letting my little sister set me back in the groove, which I usually end up doing for the fam."

"I know," Luan said gently. "But it's not weird at all. Everyone needs help sometimes, no matter how old they are. Look at me…if it hadn't been for Lincoln, I don't know how I would have survived that entire month waiting for you to come back home."

Luna smiled. In reality, she had only been gone for half a month, but it must have really felt longer to Luan. "Well, you did a pretty boss job with me tonight, sis," she said as she looked back up at her. "Thank you."

With memories of that long winter's night flooding back to her mind, Luan matched Luna's smile as she gave her hand a light squeeze. "I learned from the best."

Silence fell once more as the teens walked for what seemed like a long time down several blocks. The streets were empty; not a single car nor living soul could be found. Despite the night being dark, it was very bright, not due to the moon and stars, but the multiple street lamps dotted along the sidewalk and the soft yellow glow of multiple houses. They were now well in the more populated region of the neighbourhood, thus they were consumed by far more artificial lights than out on their front lawn; With these manufactured bulbs and fixtures illuminating the darkened world, any fragment of nature's luminosity was essentially blocked out. Still, Luan and Luna kept walking. The younger girl seemed to know where she was going, so her elder sister simply let her steer. The only sounds to be heard were the rhythmic clip-clopping of shoes and rocker boots making contact with the concrete tiles, the chirping of crickets from the woods nearby, and the faraway sounds of the city in the distance.

Luna was a woman made to produce sound. Any sound. But on occasion, she did enjoy the sounds of silence, though very few people knew this. It helped her to relax if she wasn't in the mood for music, which was extremely rare. As they passed the local playground, she was just breathing in the calm atmosphere when Luan suddenly turned off the sidewalk and led them into the park's grassy area. Luna's curiosity finally willed her to break the silence.

"Where are you taking me?"

"You'll see," came her response. Luna shrugged and continued to let Luan walk her across the lawn, past the ancient swing set that she and Luan used to push each other on, through the baseball field Lynn often practiced at, and all the way up a large hill on the far outskirts of the park. A fair distance away from the rest of the park's more activity-oriented features, there were no lampposts here, or any source of light for that matter. The hill itself was a bit of a climb, no competition to a mountain hike, but enough that Luna had to put a reasonable strain on her feet. At last, the girls reached the top.

"Lu? What's going on?" she asked, starting to feel a little suspicious now.

Luan released Luna's hand. "Turn around and look."

And so she did. Her purple-coated eyelids rose. "Whoa."

She was greeted with a surprisingly grand view of the neighbourhood. With a hill of this size, you never do notice how high it truly is until you look back. The overly bright streetlamps and house lights far down below had been reduced to mere speckles of light in the darkness they were enveloped in, illuminated now by pure natural light from the moon and the stars. Without a glare from artificial rays, Luna and Luan could now see a full black sky of sparkling stars; it was the equivalent to the biggest IMAX screen with the widest and sharpest picture ever invented, featuring shimmering diamonds as far as the eye could see. From up here, the world below looked so small, so insignificant. And here Luna was, watching it all with Luan standing next to her. Luna turned her gaze away from this breath-taking sight to look at Luan. "This is rad, dude. Did you know this was here?"

She could see Luan's face half-lit in the moonlight's reach, her braces flashing a silver shine and the daisy in her hair emitting a curious glow. "Yeah. Sometimes, when I used to feel lonely after a rough day at school…I'd come here at night when everyone was sleeping. It…helped me to feel better."

"You sneaked out at night? Why, you little devil!"

Luan simply flashed her devilish grin. Most appropriate.

A pang of discomfort suddenly took a jab at Luna, for she knew Luan had had trouble making friends in the past. It wasn't hard to believe Luan would do something like this to escape the pain she often experienced, but rarely told anyone. Luna used to think this was why she channeled so much effort into planning and carrying out such elaborate plans for April Fools' Days.

"Have you…had to come here often?" she hesitated, almost afraid of the answer.

To her relief, Luan shook her head. "I feel less lonely these days. But I still like to come here. It's…_enriching_. It's almost like my special place, but only at night. You're the first one I've brought here."

Luna said nothing as she looked out at the view again. It really was beautiful. So dazzling in fact, that it brought a familiar surge of energy through her bloodstream: the urge to make some music to express her excited spirit. Instinctively, Luna looped her guitar around to position and began to play a soft melody. Making music was a part of her soul.

She wasn't even sure what song she played, or if it even was a song to begin with. All she did was play, matching the mood she felt and the atmosphere that surrounded her. It was just her way of responding to everything she took in. Luna slowly closed her eyes as she expertly struck the strings, as if they were a part of her, just as they had been when she had first come outside to clear her depressed mind, fogged up by the memories from the mistakes she had made today. The sounds she had created with her instrument had reflected her sorrow, producing sad tones of regret as she played, longing for another chance to make things right. But now, it was quite the opposite. Feeling that all was well with her world, the music she made spoke of her new heart-felt emotions: feelings of joy, tranquility, and peace. But most of all, she played for Luan. For the family member who meant the very most to her. Luna typically didn't like to play favourites, but there was no denying that she had reserved a very profound place in her heart for Luan, one that had regrettably been neglected for a long time and had only begun to be revisited ever since the rocker had gone away on her band retreat and had rediscovered this place's importance to her life. Its doors now stood wide open like a public art gallery for Luna to enter and bask in Luan's captivating essence that could never be replaced; every aspect that made Luan special to Luna was brought forth from the shadows and displayed for her to admire and take in at her own pace. It was this feeling of closeness and sisterly love that drove her mind to compose the music she was playing now. A touching little tune that sung thanksgiving and love for her best friend and little sister. There was nothing to hide or hold back whatsoever.

As she continued to play, Luna opened her eyes and glanced Luan's way; her sister was smiling at her in a relaxed demeanor, listening to the music. It now became clear to Luna why Luan had ordered her to bring her guitar along; she had known this would happen. She knew her older sister would not resist the chance to release a new sound upon catching a glimpse of this hilltop scenery. Luna had to give Luan credit for that. The girl knew her musical sister well. It gave Luna all the more reason to keep playing.

The music from the hilltop was softly picked up by the calm breeze that was present with them, and carried down to the sleepy neighbourhood, reducing to faint echoes that touched down upon the rooftops, trees, and shadowy backyards. Perhaps to reach the ears of someone lounging on the back porch, or to sprinkle the peaceful minds of sleeping children to ensure only good dreams during their slumber tonight. For there was magic in the air tonight, but only discovered by those who took the time to find it; Luna knew it well and loved every bit of it. But what made it even more special was that she had someone to share it.

When she had finished, Luna lay her guitar down carefully on the grass, then brought her arm around Luan's shoulders to hold her close. Wordlessly, Luan let her head rest down on Luna's shoulder, giving her a little nuzzle as she leaned into her. A contented sigh left her lips as she listened to Luna's steady breathing and felt her sister's hand gently stroke her. They gazed up at the stars together in silence.

Both Luna and Luan shared two things in common. They were young artists, made to live on a stage and appear before crowds of thousands to send them joy and entertainment with their amazing respective talents. But under the surface of their love for putting on a grand show, they shared a love for something far greater: some quality time with those they kept close. And the time they spend together one-on-one was a most precious time to behold. Sometimes, they both just needed a little alone time with each other. And here they were, Luna and Luan, literally on top of the world where they could see everyone, but no one could see them. Two sisters on an adventure that never would end as long as their spirits stayed united as one.

Even now, a minuscule glimmer of guilt for how she had treated her sister today was still lingering in the depths of Luna's heart, but thanks to that sister in question, she no longer felt anchored down at the bottom of the ocean by it. Perhaps it was a good thing that it wasn't completely gone, for it certainly would last as a reminder for her to be a bit more tactful in the future towards her family. But it was like Luan had said: she could learn from her mistakes and carry on, just as Luan herself was doing right now. They had been through a lot over the years growing up together; they had said and done some nasty things, wronged each other countless times. But nothing they did had or ever would drive a stake in between their sisterhood that would break them apart. With Luan by her side and their hearts strong in step with each other, Luna felt ready to move on and not let her past hinder her progress.

In no way in the name of Hendrix was she going to let her fear of pimples keep her from doing that.

"Remember how we used to make wishes on stars when we were kids?" Luan suddenly murmured into her ear.

Luna paused, letting her memories take her away on a trip down memory lane for a brief moment. Zapping back to reality, she turned to Luan and gently pressed her lips upon the top of her head.

"Lulu, I could wish for a lot of things anytime," she whispered. "But, right now, I'm seeing stars with my sister. I couldn't wish for anything better than that."

In response, Luan snuggled into her neck and closed her eyes. "Me neither."

It may have been cool that evening, but Luan felt a peculiar warmth wrap around her snuggly that wasn't coming from Luna's protective hold. It was simply Luna's love for her and her love for Luna weaved together and forming a warm cozy blanket. And Luan knew that no acceptance into any clown college was needed to make this the best day ever. It already was.

**THE END**

* * *

_A/N: Do I think the show will ever showcase this kind of stuff in the near future?_

_No._

_Do I believe that Luna and Luan share a bond this deep?_

_Yes, I do._

_I still have hope for what the writers might do with Luna and Luan as a duo in the future considering what we saw in 'Geriantics', where we FINALLY saw some great interactions between Lisa and Lily, another sibling pairing we've been severely lacking focus on, and the whole reason I wrote Little Builders. None of their interactions contributed to the main story, but was just so nice and fulfilling to see, not to mention very-much needed for them as characters. Not forced, but rather natural, feeling like they're supposed to be there. Simple interactions like this spell 'slice of life' in every way. Since it has taken the show 4 seasons to touch on this, who knows what the future may hold for Luna and Luan._

_With regards to this story: it has been published on the 28th of November, the 1-year anniversary of my publishing of the story that started this entire series and my recognition in the Loud House fan community, Mission Accomplished. This continues to be my top fanfic with the readers and myself. It's an absolute favourite of mine and I'm glad I can share it with all of you. I was debating on whether to make Forgotten Trust the end of this year-long series, but let's face it: as long as my love for this show remains, there will always be more topics to write about. Especially with these 2 characters._

_Thank you everyone for joining me on this journey, as well as for any reviews and favs you may send my way, and be on the look-out for more stories coming soon._

_Thanks, dudes._


	3. One Last Song

_A/N: Yeah, I know I already brought the story to an end. Trust me, I was 100% satisfied with this as a whole._

_That is…until I remembered 'For Good'._

_Good golly miss molly, why didn't I remember this song when I was writing this?_

_This is an old favourite song from my parents' all-time favourtie musical, Wicked, and the more I listened to it, the more I realized how amazingly fitting it is with this story, not just with regards to its context, preface, and soothing melody, but the lyrics and embedded message almost seem to directly draw out many key points in Luna and Luan's story and conversation in Forgotten Trust, so much that this was just too great to let slide away without grabbing this fish called opportunity. I know I just had Luna play something on the hilltop with Luan…oh well, better late than never._

_So, I guess you could call this a bonus chapter (because it's certainly one to me), or you can call it Part 3. But whatever you want to call it, I hope you enjoy it!_

* * *

**Part 3 – One Last Song**

Luna and Luan continued to look out to their sleepy neighbourhood in blissful silence, the tune to Luna's last song still sprinkling the starlit sky. Only they knew they were up here on this hill, watching the world as it basked in night darkness. Most of all, only they knew of the magic that was currently enveloping them together.

With her head still resting gently on her sister's shoulder, Luan took her eyes off the view for a moment to gaze up at Luna. The musician had closed her eyes now, her breathing steady and relaxed. But her arm still lay idle around her sister's shoulders in a protective hold. Luan smiled. She felt immensely glad and relieved to have raised Luna up after she had fallen so hard. The day had certainly not been easy for her normally cool, easygoing big sister. But tonight had changed all of that, for it had been a lot of things for both of them: a reminder of their unconditional love for one another, a time of deep reflection and emotional gymnastics, a reinforcement of assurance in the trust and loyalty held for each other, an acceptance that they need not be with each other physically all of their lives as long as their presence remained locked in their hearts, a promise to always help each other up whenever the other were to fall, and a time of peace and thanksgiving for a best friend and a sister. In all, Luan couldn't describe how happy she felt. It was a rather different kind of happiness compared to the type she always felt when around Benny, but one that was extremely important to her nonetheless.

One that she could not live without.

Luan Loud stared up at Luna as she reflected deeply on these things. She could not explain how or why, but never once had she failed to draw a warming strength from her big sister's presence. Luna would never let anything bad happen to her if she could help it; she trusted Luna to guide her in life's tricky trails and it would all be worth it. Truly, the rockstar teen had made quite an impact in her life growing up and even now, sometimes in moments when Luan was not aware of her influence, Luna had been there. Oh, how she had learned these lessons well during the two weeks when they had been split apart.

Her spirits rose with growing energy, deciding on the spot to do something that she very rarely would ever do. Something for Luna. Something for them both. Something she had only ever felt truly comfortable doing in Luna's sole company.

Luna, meanwhile, was enjoying the peace and quiet of the night with her little sister under her arm, when she felt a small pressure applied to her shoulder as Luan opened her mouth to speak again.

Except she wasn't speaking. She was singing. So softly, yet Luna could hear her plain and clear. And because of their seclusion up on this hill, only Luna heard her sister as she sang in a beautifully angelic voice.

**(A/N: For best experience, play the song 'For Good' from **_**Wicked**_** while reading the story. Pay close attention to the lyrics as you do, and relate them to our characters).**

_I've heard it said__  
__That people come into our lives for a reason__  
__Bringing something we must learn__  
__And we are led__  
__To those who help us most to grow__  
__If we let them__  
__And we help them in return_

_Well, I don't know if I believe that's true__  
__But I know I'm who I am today__  
__Because I knew you..._

Luna looked wide-eyed as she listened to her. Luan very rarely sang, let alone willingly. Luan smiled shyly before looking up at the stars in the heavens.

_Like a comet pulled from orbit__  
__As it passes a sun__  
__Like a stream that meets a boulder__  
__Halfway through the wood_

_Who can say if I've been changed for the better?__  
__But because I knew you..._

She cast her gaze away from the stars and lifted her head to look pointedly at Luna.

_I have been changed…for good_

Luna stared in amazement at Luan before adopting a gentle smirk and retrieving her guitar from the grass beside her, strumming to the song. Taking the hint, she invited herself to continue the duet in hushed tones:

_It well may be__  
__That we will never meet again__  
__In this lifetime__  
__So let me say before we part__  
__So much of me__  
__Is made of what I learned from you__  
__You'll be with me__  
__Like a handprint on my heart_

Luan blushed humbly.

_And now whatever way our stories end__  
__I know you have re-written mine__  
__By being my friend…_

_Like a ship blown from its mooring__  
__By a wind off the sea__  
__Like a seed dropped by a skybird__  
__In a distant wood_

_Who can say if I've been changed for the better?_

_But because I knew you…_

Luan nodded her head solemnly.

_Because I knew you…_

Luna smiled and closed her eyes.

_I have been changed…for good._

_And just to clear the air__  
__I ask forgiveness__  
__For the things I've done you blame me for_

Luan lay her hand on Luna's shoulder as she sang her part.

_But then, I guess we know__  
__There's blame to share…_

The girls now sang together in one strong voice:

_And none of it seems to matter anymore!_

_Like a comet pulled from orbit  
As it passes a sun  
Like a stream that meets a boulder  
Halfway through the wood_

_Like a ship blown from its mooring  
By a wind off the sea  
Like a seed dropped by a bird in the wood_

_Who can say if I've been  
Changed for the better?  
_

_I do believe I have been  
Changed for the better_

Luan locked eyes with Luna before bowing her head down towards her.

_And because I knew you..._

Luna too closed her eyes, leaning forward to let their foreheads touch.

_Because I knew you..._

The sisters sang together one more time.

_Because I knew you...  
_

_I have been changed…_

_For good._

**THE END**

**(for real this time)**

* * *

_Song used: 'For Good' (Wicked, Stephen Schwartz)._


End file.
